This year more than ever before, Veganuary is everywhere! Supermarkets and restaurants are advertising Vegan options and I even heard an advert on the radio for Curry’s advertising products such as blenders and other kitchen gadgets to help make Veganuary easier. Veganuary, seems bigger and more accessible than ever.
My main motivation for trying out Vegan Cooking was something I read by Jack Munro in her book Vegan(ish). She wrote that one person, eating a vegan diet for one day per week, has a huge impact on the sustainable side of food. For that small change, over the course of a year, it would save around 40lbs of grain, 1100 gallons of water, 30 square feet of forest and one animal.
I wanted to start small, try making a vegan meal. If I could manage that, then I might manage a whole day of a vegan diet, and if I managed that then who knows how big and how regular a change, I would be able to make. With my husband and son onboard, we would be helping save an astonishing amount of resources.
As I already use vegetarian options such as Quorn when cooking, I wasn’t too daunted by the prospect of making a wholly vegan meal. I decided to make a Spaghetti Bolognaise, a family meal in our house. I was keen to test out a vegan beef, due to the high carbon footprint that regular beef produces.
One anxiety inducing element of trying to cook an entirely vegan friendly meal, is making sure the ingredients are actually vegan friendly. I made a point of double and triple checking ingredients. For example, many Quorn products, including their mince, are not vegan because they contain egg. When it came to cooking, it took a little bit of time to cook the “mince” for it to have a regular looking colour and consistency. Whilst normal mince tends to flake apart into bits with ease, vegan mince needs a little more encouragement. Once it was browned, it was business as usual, adding veg and a sauce then allowing it to simmer away.
Mealtime came and honestly, I was amazed. The texture was slightly different but taste-wise, it was delicious. More or less the same as our usual bolognaise but both healthier and much better for the environment. We all enjoyed the meal and plenty was left for another meal.
After making, eating and most importantly, enjoying a vegan Spaghetti Bolognaise, I have decided that I am going to do my best to incorporate veganism into meals, with the aim of my family and I having a day a week of vegan eating which will have both health and environmental benefits. I am confident that I will certainly be able to manage this. Do you think you could too?
Resources
- Find out more about impact of meat and tips on how to try out plant-based diet.
- A few nice family- and planet-friendly vegan recipes (turning familiar meals into vegan options) from Ian, Greener Kirkcaldy’s Community Chef. They include Spaghetti Bolognaise using lentils instead of meat substitute for a lower cost option!
